Tommy and Samantha
by Chrsbrosky
Summary: Will Tommy ever get Samantha to notice him? Do I even care?


Tommy and Samantha

Eight-year old Tommy was out in his front lawn watering the bushes. He liked to pretend that he was holding a flamethrower and burning the bush to kingdom come. "FWOOSH! Burn, baby, BURN!" He yelled as he set the nozzle to "spray" and shot a stream of water into the depths of the bush. It was a hot summer day, and he was enjoying himself. And then she rode by on her bike. The bike was bright pink, and it smelled like roses, and his heart was instantly taken by the angel face he was staring at. She rode lazily by, enjoying the summer day. His heart leaped into his throat. She _looked_ at him. She rode by and then he grinned from ear to ear. He started to sing "Love Shack", which he chose because it was the only song he knew that had the word "love" in it. After considering an idea which ran through his mind, he ran back to the house and flew up the stairs to the window in his room. He grabbed a nearby pair of binoculars and aimed it at the girl, who was turning into her own driveway down the road. _She lives two blocks down,_ he thought. _She lives SO CLOSE!_ He leaned out the window to get a better look at the girl's house. Suddenly he heard a smash, and realized he wasn't holding onto the binoculars anymore.

Eight-year old Samantha was out for her afternoon bike ride. She liked to go around the neighborhood and look around at all the different gardens. Every single family in the neighborhood had a garden on their front lawn, and she loved to go around mentally reviewing each one with her own special rating system: Either she likes it, or she doesn't. _Don't like it._ She thought as she rode past the house at the corner. _Like it. _She thought the next house's garden was cute, with the flowers arranged in a smiley face. She rode by a house where there was a boy watering some bushes in the front lawn. He turned to look at her and then a look of shock ran across his face. He dropped the hose and stood gawking at her while she rode by. She tried hard not to laugh, and when she was a safe enough distance away she let out a chuckle. _Don't like it._

**Six years later…**

Tommy ran into her (literally) in between second and third period. She let out a gasp as she dropped her books. He felt something heavy crush his toes. He felt himself falling, and then his nose came in contact with the floor, making a sickening crunch. _Oh, great._ He thought as his nose started to bleed. Dazed, he rolled onto his side. She was standing over him, with a look of horror on her face. He clumsily rose to his feet and held out his hand, which was dotted with fresh blood. "Hi, nice to meet you." He tried to grin, only to wince due to his nose. She pointed at his face. "OhmyGodareyouokay?" She shouted out. He smiled and then winced again. _She cares about me._ His heart was back in his throat. Tommy then pretended to shake the pain off and try to impress her. "Oh I'm fine. Nothing I can't handle. Heh." She gave him a strange look, and then said, "You really don't look that good. Here, I'll help you to the nurse's office." He smiled then winced again. "Heh, thanks for caring! Eh, my names Tom-." He paused. Should he use Tommy, which was his baby name, or Thomas, which would make him seem more mature? She helped him down the hall, and they arrived in the main office. "Um, excuse me?" The girl asked the secretary. The red-haired woman turned and let out a moan when she saw Tommy. He realized that his nose was still gushing blood, and that it was probably broken. Suddenly he found himself in the nurse's office, with a tissue stuffed up his nose. The girl had left a while ago, and he missed her more than ever.

**The next day…**

He came to school with a box of tissues. He luckily hadn't broken his nose, but the nurse told him to keep the tissues nearby in case of "the bloody sneeze". He didn't like the sound of that. After second period, he made it to his class without any pain or blood. He walked in and sat down at the nearest unoccupied desk. She walked in three minutes later, and he realized that this was going to be his favorite class of the day. Tommy said a silent prayer, and it was miraculously answered. She sat down at the desk next to him. She didn't pay any attention to him, but then she happened to glance over and remember yesterday's disaster in the hallway. "Oh, hi! How's your nose?" She asked. He froze in his seat. Should he try to say something cool? Maybe something funny? He settled for "My nose is fine." And then he awkwardly shifted in his seat. She got that strange look on her face again as she nodded slowly and then looked back to her books. He mentally slapped himself.

**The next week…**

Tommy was a nervous wreck. Every day he would walk into class, sit down, and wait for her to come in. When she did, Tommy would try to arrange himself into a position on his chair that he thought was "cool". That would include him putting his feet up onto his desk and putting his hands behind his head, like someone relaxing on a cool summer day. Having it been a rainy day, Tommy's muddy shoes left a streak across his desk- and his homework. He quickly took his legs down and then tried to squeeze the fresh mud out of his paperwork. She sat down next to him, and ignored him, just like the last five days of school. The weekend had been rough for Tommy. She never went out on bike rides anymore, so Tommy would always look forward to school the next day. Twice he has almost fallen out the window due to a sighting of her on her driveway. He soon began to realize that it wasn't meant to be. _God, I'll never have a chance with her. _He would soon be proved wrong.

**The next day…**

Samantha always loved science, which was third period. She was always fascinated by biology, and she was delighted when the teacher said that they were going to start a new project involving swamps. "Each one of you must find a partner," The teacher began. "You both are going to be science partners for the rest of the school year." You have five minutes." Samantha quickly looked around the room to see all the cute guys already talking to the other girls. Samantha suddenly got a sinking feeling when the boy next to her (_The weirdo one who ran into me and broke his nose?_)turned to her and asked with a smile "Wanna be partners?" She looked around helplessly at the other kids who were already partnered up, and she let out a small, quiet groan. She turned back to the bloody nose kid and said, "Okay, fine…" He smiled again. Samantha tried not to frown at her bad luck. _This is just great. I'm stuck with the ugliest weirdo in the whole class. _Tommy tried not to cheer at his good luck. _This is great! I'm partners with the prettiest girl in the whole class!_ The teacher then brought out the frogs. "Class, today we're going to be dissecting to learn more about amphibians. Now, if you don't want to dissect the frog, too bad." The teacher smiled. "You will get an F instantly. Or I have a toad you can dissect instead. Now you have thirty minutes to describe the various organs of the frog, and please, all you girls, be quiet. Begin."

Samantha picked up the scalpel and wondered why she must be put in the most awkward positions. The blade hovered over the frog's stomach, and she wondered if she would be able to do it. Tommy watched her carefully and then asked,

"Want me to do it?"

"Uh, no, I can do it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

A minute passed in silence.

Tommy started to get frustrated.

"Look, I can do it. It's not that hard."

He grabbed the scalpel and made a nice clean cut down the center of the frog's stomach. A clear liquid flowed out into the pan, and Samantha could feel the small creeping feeling of her breakfast wanting to come back out. Tommy triumphantly opened the frog's stomach and started to write down the various organs on his notepad. "I think that's his stomach," Tommy pointed out. "Or is that it's liver?" Samantha jumped from the desk and ran to the bathroom, while Tommy continued.

**The next week…**

"Class, your next project has arrived." The teacher began. "You and your partner must make a poster board of all the various organisms living in the swamp. You have two weeks. Your board must have…" Tommy didn't listen anymore. _We need to make a poster board? That means one of us has to go to the other's house!_ Samantha had the same thought, only hers was on a tone of misery.

After class, Tommy walked up to Samantha with the idea of inviting her over.

"Hi." Tommy said with a small, cool smile.

Samantha turned to him and tried to smile back, because she knew she was probably stuck with him for the rest of the year. "Hey." She replied.

_Oh my God she said "Hey" to me!_ Tommy stammered out some words. "Uh, I was wondering… since we have to do the project together… Which of our houses do you want to work at?"

Samantha was taken by surprise. She didn't expect this... (weirdo) boy to ask what she wanted. She responded, "How about mine?" _I would feel much more comfortable in my own house. _She thought.

"Sure!" Tommy said. _I wonder if her room smells like roses too… _Tommy thought.

She then asked, "Do you need to know my address? I think we live on the same street." He almost responded with a "Of course I know where you live." But he quickly changed his words to "We live on the same street? Oh, good, my mom won't need to drive me then." She wrote down her address on a piece of scrap paper and handed it to him. "See you later," she said. "And come at around four."

"Okay, I will."

"Bye."

**A few hours later…**

Tommy stood outside her house clutching his bag of supplies with one hand and his other hand stuffed deeply into his pocket. He wouldn't dare look up at her bedroom window, just in case she was watching. He gathered up his courage and briskly walked to the door. He reached for the doorbell.

Samantha was getting her supplies ready in the living room. No way was she going to be alone in her room with that… (weirdo) boy. She jumped when she heard the doorbell. She had told her mom earlier that her science partner was coming over. Yes, she has a science partner. Yes, it was a boy. Don't worry mom; we'll be working in the living room. No, I don't like him. Mom, stop worrying.

After she had managed to talk her mom into being fine with a boy being in the house, (Samantha was an only child) she walked up to her room and prayed to God that he wouldn't try to make her fall in love with him. She hated it when all the guys who liked her were always trying to flirt and sneak some kisses on her. They automatically think that since they like her, she must like them. The last time was awful, she had been eating her lunch in the cafeteria and one of her guy friends who liked her sat down on the seat next to her. "Hey, babe." He said.

"Uh, what?" She glared at him.

"C'mon babe. I always call you that."

"Uh, no you don't. And you never will again, please."

"You have gorgeous eyes."

She had stared at his big, fat, smelly face. He continued.

"After school, want to come over to my house and… hang out?" He winked.

Samantha said, "Don't you already have a girlfriend?" He had ignored her as he wrapped his hands around her head and kissed her, automatically going straight to making out. When she felt his tongue start to touch hers, she pulled away and sunk her fist deep into his gut. His eyes opened wide as he let out something that sounded like a balloon deflating. He fell off the seat onto the floor. She would always remember that day, and she still laughed about it. _I don't need to worry about this boy, however._ She was referring to the boy that she opened the door to let in. _He doesn't seem like he would do anything._

Tommy was let into the house by the girl, and she said, "We're going to be working in the living room." She walked quickly away and he followed.

They sat down on the wooden floor of the living room. She pulled out the poster board. "This is the board we're going to be using," She said. "Now we just need the information to put on it." Tommy then stood up and said, "Okay, do you have a computer?" She once again was taken by surprise. She had expected him to say something that had nothing to do with the project, and here he was, ready to work. She said, "Yeah, there's one in the office. Here, I don't think my mom's using it right now." Then Samantha's mom came out of the kitchen, and Tommy shook her hand politely. Samantha said, "Mom, this is…" She stopped. _What was this kid's name?_ Tommy finished her sentence. "Tommy." He said with a smile. Samantha's mom instantly liked him. She said, "While you two are working, I'll whip you up some cookies and milk as an afterschool snack." Samantha smiled. "That would be great, mom. Okay, now let's go."

Tommy sat down on the chair next to her while her fingers flew across the keyboard. They started to look up facts on swamps, and I shall move ahead to the next scene, where they are at the table eating cookies, fresh out of the oven.

Tommy ate his cookie, careful to keep his mouth closed while chewing. She was talking up a storm, and liked to sit and listen to her. She was going on about how her mom always makes the best cookies and that she herself loves to cook and that next week she was actually going to be cooking for a party and… Tommy wasn't really paying attention when she went on about things that didn't interest him. He just liked to listen to her talk. "…my name?" She asked. He snapped back to reality. She had just asked him something. He combed his brain for what answer he should say to that. He didn't know what her name was so he said, "Uh… No, you didn't tell me." She laughed and said, "I really didn't tell you my name? Oh, man, I can't believe I didn't! My name's Samantha." He loved the sound of it. Samantha. Three syllables. He repeated it to himself over and over in his mind.

Two hours later, they had gotten a lot of research done. Tommy turned to her and said, "I better be getting on home. My mom told me to be home by 6:00." Samantha looked at the clock in the bottom right on the computer screen. It read 6:30. Samantha then stood up and walked with him to the door. "You know, I never said sorry for your, uh… nose bleed the other day." She said.

"Oh, it was my fault. I didn't even try to throw my arms in front of me when I fell. God, that was a lot of blood, wasn't it?"

She laughed and said yes, it was. And he said goodbye and walked away, carrying his bag of supplies. He had barely talked the entire evening, and she was surprised that she actually enjoyed having him over. She would invite him over again tomorrow.

**The next week…**

"Okay, I think we should put the picture of the frog… Here." Samantha pointed at the empty space on the middle of the poster board. Tommy objected. "Nah, we need something cooler than a frog in the middle of the page. Why don't we find a big photo of a swamp, and then paste the frog over the swamp that way it looks like he's swimming in it?"

"Um…"

"And why don't we try to find a different picture of a frog? This one makes it look like it's going to eat me."

She laughed.

He smiled. "This is the first time I've ever felt like a fly."

They were both pasting the photos they found on the internet, and all of the data they collected was on two sheets of printer paper. Samantha's mother had brought a huge tray of craft supplies, so the floor of the living room was covered with glue, markers, paint, and newspapers. There was a small incident earlier when Tommy spilled glitter all over his jeans, and Samantha was on the floor laughing when he realized that he was going to have to walk home with the shiniest jeans in town. After a few hours, he stood up, stretched, and looked at the clock. He said, "Oh! It's five!"

"I thought you had to be home by 6:00?"

"Yeah, but the game's on at 5:15."

"Oh, but we're still working. You don't want to get an F, do you?"

"But we're pretty much done. I don't see why I need to stay another hour when I could be watching the game. Besides, I can come over tomorrow and finish. We have five more days."

"Yeah, but… uh…"

Tommy had planned this all out that morning. There was no game at 5:15. And he didn't want to leave, he was just testing her to see what she would say if he were to leave earlier than usual.

"Well," He said. "I guess I could stay another hour and finish." Her face brightened and she grabbed more paper. "Okay, let's keep working!"

She had started to give him a hug every time he would leave to go home, and (of course) he was always looking forward to it.

**The next day…**

They finished early, at around five. They sat on the floor staring at their creation. The poster was a colorful sight, with photos of frogs, alligators, and pond scum. They sat staring for a while, and then Tommy stood up. "Okay, you keep the poster until Friday, and I'll be ready with my side of the speech." Friday was when they had to turn the project in.

Samantha looked at the clock and said, "Do you want to hang out for a little while? You have an hour."

Tommy almost yelled out with joy, and he said, as calmly as he could, "Okay, sure. What do you want to do?"

The inside of her room wasn't pink, as he had imagined it. It was blue. And it didn't smell like roses either, and he felt sort of foolish for thinking so. She pulled out a board game. "Have you ever played Sorry?" She asked.

Tommy chuckled. "Of course I have. Who hasn't?"

After an hour, Tommy won.

"Oh… I was so close!" Samantha half yelled, half laughed. They then walked downstairs and she gave him his hug. Only this time, she said, "Why don't you ever hug back?" It was true, Tommy never did hug back. He sort of froze, not knowing what to say or do. "Uh…" He slowly put his arms around her. _Awkward awkward awkward awwkard…_ He kept repeating it in his head. She smiled and laughed. "You don't need to be shy around me. Okay, see you tomorrow." She tried not to laugh as saw a bright red blush fill his cheeks. He mumbled, "Okay, see you." She walked back inside and watched him stumble down the sidewalk, dazed and embarrassed.

**Friday**

They both grinned at each other as the teacher wrote a big, fat A on their project. Samantha then invited him back over to her house to celebrate. "With a huge cheese pizza." She added. He was supposed to arrive at around 5:30, so he watched the clock carefully, knowing that if he arrived at exactly 5:30 he would look like someone who couldn't wait to go over. He didn't want to appear too obvious, even though deep down he knew he already was. He arrived to see a Papa John's pizza truck pulling out of her driveway. He knocked on the door and then found himself a few minutes later munching on a slice of triple cheese. They played a short game of Sorry, and then Tommy said that he had to start on his way home. He needed to get up early the next day, because he has a soccer game. She seemed only a little bit disappointed, and then they had another hug and he went walking back home. On his stroll back to his house, he stopped at the drug store at the intersection to pick up some beef jerky, one of his favorite snacks. Then he continued his walk to his house, not expecting the disaster up ahead. He was three houses away from home when he heard a loud, blaring horn. He whirled around to see two headlights jump the curb behind him. He doesn't really remember what happened next, all he knows is that he saw a Honda logo on the hood, and that he had dropped his beef jerky.

**The next day…**

He arrived at school with a gigantic cast around his leg and two crutches. When he stumbled into third period, he saw Samantha's face turn into an expression of shock as she stared at his mangled leg. Later, at lunchtime, she was the first to sign the cast. Samantha said, "Looks like you won't be coming over to my house anytime soon."

Tommy's mom was now taking him to school every day due to his leg, so Samantha was going to surprise him with a visit later after school. She walked up his driveway and knocked on his door. She introduced herself to his mom and she said, "Oh! Tommy told me you were going to be coming. He's up in his room." Samantha found him sitting in his bed with his leg propped up high. "You knew I was coming?" she asked. He only smiled.

"The doc said that I would be better in about three months," He said as he pulled out a board game. "Wanna play Scrabble?"

Five hours later, Samantha went home, looking around carefully to make sure there weren't any more drunk drivers. The one that hit Tommy had been taken into custody, but she wasn't entirely sure how all of that worked out.

**The next day…**

Over at the local cinema, a new film came out: "Revenge of the Aliens". Tommy had been wanting to see it for a long time, and it was finally in theaters. He was watching the clock the entire day, and finally he heard the bell ring. He ran out the door as fast as his crutches would let him. He had told his mom earlier that day that she didn't need to pick him up from school; he was going to be at the movie theater. He had made it a few feet down the sidewalk when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head and saw Samantha standing behind him. "Hey, slow down," She said. "Where're you going?" He quickly explained to her that he was going to a movie and- he glanced down at his watch- it was starting in ten minutes. He better get there fast so he could get popcorn and- "Wait," She said. "What movie are you going to?"

"'Revenge of the Aliens', we can get together tomorrow or something, I really have to go now."

"I'll come with you."

"What? It's about aliens. I thought girls hate aliens!"

She insisted, and they both made it to the theater five minutes early. They got bought popcorn and two small sodas, and they walked over into the room that was playing the film. There was a sign over the door that said: "REVNGE ALENS". The movie started as they sat down, and he said, "Sort of stupid how this gory movie has to be our first date." He froze. He had accidentally thought out loud, and he felt his cheeks start to burn. He was too embarrassed to look at her face to see what kind of expression she had. She replied, "I don't really care." He didn't know whether to continue to be embarrassed, or to be relieved. Shaking, he picked up his drink and took two long gulps. About a quarter through the movie, he ran out of soda. He whispered to her that he was going to be right back; he was going to get more Coke. He walked over to the bathroom and turned on the sink. He splashed cold water across his face, and then he went to the concession stand. He was sort of getting the hang of moving around with his crutches, and he briskly stumbled back to his seat with a fresh Coke. He sat down and took a sip of his soda, being aware that he doesn't have any more money to pay for another one. _Maybe I have enough for a snack after the movie? I think I have an extra dollar bill… Oh crap._ Her hand had slid into his. _Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap, oh crap…_ Samantha tried not to giggle as she heard his breathing grow faster. He should really learn to control himself.

After the movie, (_Which really sucked, _Samantha thought) they both walked down main street towards Barnstaple Dr., which is where they lived. They took a shortcut through the park, and they both threw a penny into the fountain, making a wish. Tommy was trying to come up with some kind of conversation, and he started talking about his grandpa who died a few years ago. Then, about halfway through the park, he tripped over a root that had grown through the sidewalk. He felt himself falling, and then he remembered what had happened to his nose. He turned to the side and made himself fall into the grass on the right side of the sidewalk, and he rolled a few feet. She ran over to help him, but he insisted that he could get up by himself. He dragged himself over to a nearby tree and tried to pull himself up. After four tries, he gave up and sat down in the shade of the tree. She sat down next to him and said, "Want to just hang out here for a little while?" He nodded. He suddenly felt really tired, closed his eyes, and leaned against the tree. They sat there for about ten minutes in the cool breeze that was blowing. Then he opened his eyes to see hers right in front of him. Their noses were barely touching, and for some reason he felt strangely calm. He kissed her first, and then they got lost in their own little world. Tommy felt like he was in heaven. Samantha was surprised at how soft his lips were.

**Two weeks later…**

They had gone on seven different dates, more movies, the fair, a pool party, and even to dinner at the local Chili's. He actually didn't really go in the water at the pool party due to his cast, but he didn't care. Samantha was with him. Tommy felt like heaven would never end. He was wrong. He found out from his friend Bobby that Samantha had been caught a kid by the name of Bear Williams, who was captain of the football team. Tommy felt like the whole world had gone up in flames, and he only saw her once after he found out. It was the last day of school, and next year she was going to go to Buffalo Lakes High School, and he was going to Owl Forest High School. He had figured that they were going to keep dating after school hours throughout the school year, and hopefully they would go to the same college after they finish high school. He was walking out the door when he saw her drinking from the water fountain. She finished her drink and suddenly froze when she saw him looking at her. She started to say something, but from the look on her face she realized that it was no use. She walked out the door, and he never saw her again.

**Thirty years later…**

Happily married, Tommy will never forget his first girlfriend, and he knows that she never was the girl for him. He has a son of his own who is in elementary school, and he has a daughter on the way. Life is good.

The End

:D

Copyright © 2010

Alexander Johnston


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